Strong earthquake rocks eastern Indonesia; tsunami unlikely

JAKARTA, Indonesia – A strong undersea earthquake has hit off the coast of eastern Indonesia, but no injuries or serious damage was reported immediately.

The Indonesian Meteorology and Geophysics Agency said the temblor Friday had a magnitude of 6.6 and was unlikely to trigger a tsunami.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake measured 6.5 and struck about 94 kilometers (58 miles) west of Waingapu, a coastal town on Sumba island in East Nusatenggara province. It said it was centered at a depth of about 30 kilometers (19 miles).

Indonesia is prone to earthquakes due to its location on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanoes and fault lines in the Pacific Basin.

In 2004, a massive earthquake off Sumatra triggered a tsunami that killed 230,000 people in a dozen countries.